My spoiler-free review of Sophie Mackintosh's Man Booker longlisted debut novel! Whilst on a work placement in London, I got chance to get caught up on some reading, as well as watching all of season 2 of (the now sadly cancelled) Happy! The Water Cure, by Sophie Mackintosh, was one of the books I read whilst staying in a pretty miserable hostel, replete with every hostel trope talked about by every stand-up comedian who has done any traveling whatsoever. Banging doors, loud conversations in the corridor at four in the morning, a chorus of car horns outside my window from 11pm onward, showers that ran out of hot water after two minutes ... the works. Thankfully, it was worth it for the experience, which has convinced me that London is the place for me. Just got to nail down that pesky job now! Anyway, the book.
Longlisted for the 2018 Man Booker Prize (now just the regular Booker Prize, presumably because the Crankstart Booker doesn't have a great ring to it), The Water Cure is the debut novel from British author Sophie Mackintosh. It tells the story of three sisters - Grace, Lia and Sky - who live on an island with their parents, King and Mother. Early on, it is established that the house they live in formerly operated as some kind of sanatorium or retreat for damaged women, run by King and Mother, and unsettling flashbacks and recollections of these events are a common feature throughout the novel. Women would make their way to this retreat, fleeing a world that the girls have been informed is full of toxins, toxins borne by men. Here they would undergo various treatments, formulated and administered by King and Mother, including the water cure of the title. Grace, Lia and Sky also receive their own peculiar tough love remedies, such as randomly determining which members of the family receive love from the others, or being presented with the choice to either save their sister's pain or bear it themselves. Soon, however, their not-exactly-cosy lives are shattered by the arrival of men on their beach, and the threat they might pose to the girls. That's all I'll say of the plot - any more information would be stepping into spoiler territory, and I'd hate to give away any of the multiple mysteries woven throughout what's actually a relatively slim volume. The Water Cure took a little time for me to get into - the opening chapters are short and flit between characters a lot, which I wasn't overly enamored with as it made me feel like I wasn't settling into the narrative. This is probably Mackintosh's intention though, as unease is the order of the day here, and after this initial back and forth she focuses on a single character. I found myself enjoying the book but not feeling that drawn into it, until about the halfway point. All of a sudden I was hugely invested, and read the rest in a single sitting. The book unleashes its power slowly, with ratcheting tension and intense, hallucinatory prose. It is always hot on the island, the heat seeming to be almost unbearable at times, and this only adds to the stifling atmosphere Mackintosh creates. Despite the size of the house and grounds, and indeed the island itself, the arrival of just three men, one of whom is just a child, seems to make things feel positively crowded, their presence in every scene imposing and menacing. The threat they might pose looms large in the wings from the moment they arrive, sowing discord and mistrust among the female protagonists. The Water Cure is, in essence, a study of relationships, both familial and romantic, and in particular the power of sisterhood. Throughout the novel, these relationships are tested and strained, and it's testament to Sophie Mackintosh's skill as a writer that whatever happens, the way events unfold and these relationships entangle is both devastating yet, in hindsight, perfect. Anything that happens feels as if it was always going to happen, that events were fated - or perhaps doomed - to be played out this way on this oppressive, sun-bleached island all along. Currently reading: Lanny, Max Porter Currently listening: Agent Orange, Sodom
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorOllie - BA English and Creative Writing, MA Publishing. Archives
April 2020
Categories
All
|